Pipestem cleaner



july @924% J.` J. MCCRTHY PIPESTEM SUMMER Filed July 1.8 529:22

Patented July l, 19.2.4.

UNITED STATES l Lease PATENT' ortica.

AI'OHN IQCARTHY, OF HIDDLBORO, MASSACHUSETTS PIPFSTEM CLEANER.

,.a'pncaaenmed Imy is', 1923. serial-No. 652,246.

To all whom t mappe/noem.'

Be it known @ha I, JOHN J; Meommf,

l Middleb'oio, ixf the county bacco pipe stem' and useful'lmprovementsin l of Plymouth and State of Massachusetts, have invented new PipestemCleaners, of which the following '1s a specification.

The object Aof this invention 1s to provide a cleaner Acomposed ofiiexible wire and adapted to be inserted in the bore of a towhich iseither straight or curved, and to clean the bore -by removing therefromall matter accumulated therein in cluding the relatively whichaccumulates 1n the bore at its junc- -tion with -thebow1, theconstruction of the cleaner being such that it is adapted to scrape andremove deposits from all portions of the bore, and reain out cakeddeposits in the forward end of the bore and thebottom of the bowl. I

1 attain the object of the invention by the improved constructionhereinafter described and claimed.

Of the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification,

Figure l is a side view of a pipe stem cleanerembodying the invention.

Figure '2 is an enlargement of a portion of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an end view, the outer end.

Figure 4 shows in perspective portions of the two wire members shown bythe preceding ii ures before said members are intertwiste Figure 5 is asection on line 5-5 of Figure 2, considerably enlarged.

The same reference characters ind'icate the same parts in all thefigures.

My improved cleaner' is composed of two flexible members 12 offlat-sided wire which is oblong in cross section, each member hax ingside faces-13, and edge faces 14, intersecting the side faces,the'ntersection of said faces forming angular scraping edges or corners15. v

The outer ends of the members 12- are V-shaped, each end being formed bytwo oblique faces 16 which meet to forman a ex 17, on the longitudinalcenter of thememer.

The members in the condition shown by 'looking toward Figure 4, areplaced side by side with their hard caked matter The members are thenintertwisted be tween the points 18 and 19, (Figure 1), the point 18being spaced from the V-shaped ends.' The twisting operation providestwopart helical Scrapers extending lengthwise of the cleaner, ing twoscraping corners 15, one following the other when the cleaner is rotatedin the bore of a pipe stem as vshown by Figure 5, in which the bore ofthe stem is indicated much' enlarged by the dotted circle 20.' A slighttransverse curvature is imparted to the members by the twistingoperation, so that the corner 15 of one member is slightly offset fromthe edge face 14 of theother member, the two corners 15 being thusadaptlejd to act simultaneously in scraping the ore.

The Vshaped ends -of the members collectively constitute a two-partreamer, adapted to bore through a caked deposit, the apex of the reamerbeing on the longitudinal center or axis of the cleaner.

-The width of each member 12 is prefcrably about one-sixteenth of aninch, and it thickness is preferably about one-fourth o* its width,These` dimensions may be slightly varied, however. I find that a cleanercomposed of two members of about the dimensions specified, hassuilicient flexibility to conform to any .of the usual curves of pipestems, and is more flexible 4than would be the case if a sin le wiremember, havin the thickness of tie two members here si own, wereemployed. I also find that each member supports the other, so that thecleaner is not objectionably twisted by torsional strain exerted inrotating it in a pipe stem, and relative movement or displacement of theV-shaped ends is prevented.

'lhe members 1Q are connected at the inner end of the cleaner by meansforming an operating handle.

ln this instance the members are two pieces of wire connected at theinner end of the cleaner by a knob or handle 22, to which the pieces aresuitably fixed. The members may be parts of a single elongated piece ofwire bent at its middength to form a neck connecting the members at theinner end of the cleaner.

The cleaner is normally straight, and is therefore adapted for use in astrai ht stem.

An enclosing tube or sheath 23, s own by dotted lines in Figure 1, maybe provided to contain the cleaner when it is not in use,

each helical scraper present? the sheath being adapted for insertion ina garment pocket. One end of the' sheath may be ieldingly engaged withthe bead or knob' 22.

The twisted portions of the members', 12, held in contact with eachother only by'the intertwisting of the members, are adapted tQ sliplongitudinally on each other when the cleaner is flexed by contact. witha bore of a curved pipe stem, so that the cleaner may be substantiallyas flexible as one of the members 12 alone.

If desired, however, the V-'shaped end portions of the members may bebrazed, soldered,'or otherwise united to each other, in which case the'twisted portion will be less flexible than when the members are free tosli on each other.

VI c aim:

1. A pipe-stem' cleaner composed of two fiat-sided \vire,1nembeis, eachoblong in cross sectionplaced side by side and inter- Vtwisted so thattheir longitudinal edges form helical two-part AScrapers extendinglengthwise of the cleaner, each scraper presenting two scraping corners,one following the other when the cleaner is rotated in a pipe stem, theouter endsof said members being V-shaped, and flush with each other, andforming,r a two-part pointed reaming cutter` the' point of-which is onthe .lon 'itudinal center of the cleaner, the ga'ge o the Wire formingsaid members being such that the cleaner is adapted to enter the bore ofa.

pipe stem amlhas a sufficient flexibility to con rm to curvaturethereof, each member supporting the other and confining 4the saidV-shapcd ends beside each other.

2. A pipe stem cleaner substantially as specified by claim 1, thetwisted-portions of said members being free foslip longitudinally oneach otherx.

In testimony whereof I have axed my signature.

JOHN J. .f-.i'comt'm Y. A

